Overdose deaths have been consistently rising in Alaska for the past several years. Most of that is due to illegal fentanyl. And, it’s showing up more and more in pills that look like prescription drugs, but are counterfeit.
Authentic and counterfeit 30mg oxycontin opioid pills. The counterfeit versions are made with fentanyl by cartels in Mexico and six in ten of them nationally contain a potentially lethal dose. in Alaska for the past several years. Most of that is due to illegal fentanyl. And, it’s showing up more and more in pills that look like prescription drugs, but are counterfeit.
“The dosage units of fentanyl that we seized was within the millions of potentially fatal doses, so enough to kill Alaska twice over,” Wegrzyn said. “Those are farms in rural parts of Mexico in kitchens and bathrooms and houses,” said Wegrzyn. “There’s no beakers involved. It’s buckets and pieces of wood to stir them.” “Some batches may be very potent,” said Wegrzyn, “and some batches may not have anything; it might just be binder. And you just don’t know.”of these fake pills nationally have a potentially fatal dose of fentanyl. Wegrzyn says rates in Alaska are likely similar.
This is partly because fentanyl is such a powerful drug. A lethal dose of it can fit on the tip of a pencil.
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